Construction Nightmare - need help!!

Hi Everyone,

Today is my first day on this site. I'm hoping that someone out there can feel my pain. We are in a middle of a construction nightmare. We signed with a GC over a year ago. Our construction finally started in October and as of today, April 4, only the framing is completed. First the contractor poured a crooked foundation wall, used OSB wood instead of plywood, used 2 x 4 instead of 2 x 6 as per contract for the exterior wall. Now, he has stopped work. We've contacted the lawyer. We've already had to pay $6,200 to extend our construction loan. He is charging us for things that are payed for and also for things that are clearly in the contract. We need to get rid of this guy but don't know what the consequences are. Hopefully my attorney will be able to help soon. In any case, our joy of owning our home is gone and the losses are just mounting. We have two little boys and this is just a big mess that we never even dreamt of getting into. Any advice will be helpful.

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Construction Nightmare - need help!!

naper, sorry for your pain. im no lawyer. but first i would call your bank. seeing that they too have a vested interest in the outcome of the house, i would have them stop giving this guy money. where did you find this guy? the gc's i have always been friends or friends of friends. you could even contact the building inspector to have a stop order placed on the work if it doesnt meet code until you can find another gc to fix the work and finish the house. if all else fails, your gc pays in a fund to help protect problems like this. do some checking around, im sure your building inspector has some contacts and should be willing to assist you.

Construction Nightmare - need help!!

It may seem too late to get a design professional involved but if I were you, I would hire an architect to advise me even now. You need a lawyer but you also need someone who understands what the contractor actually did and why it is a violation of the contract or the building code. Very few lawyers understand these things. No offense to contractors, but this is a job for somenone trained in building design, code compliance and construction contracts. Some architects act as consultants for lawyers and can be used as an expert witness later. If you get out of this mess with anything left please don't start again without hiring a professional who only works for you. An architect's fee is cheap insurance against what you are now experiencing.

Construction Nightmare - need help!!

I would get a attorney and fire this guy. It is a sign of things to come. If i was building in naperville the first person who i would ask if they could recomend a gc would be aaron b here at the board. He is a roofing contractor in lockport and naperville is just down the road. But then on the other hand he might not feel comfortable recomending a gc.

Construction Nightmare - need help!!

You should let your builders association board know what has happened that way they will take his builders license away or hit him with a fine of some sort. Seems so many builders get away with things and no one says anything to get the license removed.